It all starts today.
The 2009 Big Ten football season kicks off tonight when Indiana takes on Eastern Kentucky in the Hoosiers' newly renovated Memorial Stadium.
(Why the Hoosiers spend $55 million to improve facilities only to sell away home games is beyond me. But that is another story.)
The Thursday night kickoff, a first for the Big Ten, will feature a pretty good FCS team against the worst team in the Big Ten.
The Hoosiers are bad, but there is no way they can lose to an FCS team, right?
There was a time no one would think this game would be a challenge for any Big Ten team, but times have changed.
Appalachian State famously beat Michigan in the Big House in 2007, and the same year Minnesota lost at home to North Dakota State. In 2006, Northwestern was stunned at home by New Hampshire, and Southern Illinois knocked off Indiana in Bloomington.
Just last year, Wisconsin had to come back in dramatic fashion to force overtime against FCS Cal Poly. The Badgers won, but not because they deserved it. Instead they can thank Cal Poly kicker Andrew Gardner for the assist.
To say a precedent has been set in the last few seasons is putting it mildly.
The Big Ten has taken a dramatic dip on the national respect meter over the last few years. There are many reasons for it—some are warranted, some are not.
But the fact remains, the Big Ten has not done anything (that has yet worked) to try to reverse this perception.
That could be about to change.
The Big Ten Media Days told a story of a group of coaches and players who now are recognizing the perception of the Big Ten. They acknowledge what the college football world is saying about them and all seem determined to change that perception.
That, my Big Ten brethren, is what we call the first step.
Admitting you have a problem.
So where do we go from here?
In order to stop the losing, there are 11 more steps. Complete those steps, teams of the Big Ten, and you will complete your journey back to respectability and will no longer be the "conference that was."
It won't be easy, but it is necessary. You may want to quit, but you must press on. It may seem like the whole world is against you—they are, but you have to turn that into motivation.
It will be all the sweeter when you reach that final destination.
Follow the steps.
Step 1—Admit you have a problem.
Check. Let the healing begin...
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